The ambush had failed. The ambush was in a bit more disarray, in fact, when the First Minister noted that the number of people in fuel poverty actually rose under the previous administration.

Here endeth the first lesson - do your homework before you pretend to be smart.

Damp squib. She used the wrong formula again then to the First Minister's advantage, so to speak. I don't know.

"I'm answering Wendy Alexander's questions very precisely," Mr Salmond replied. "It's not my fault if she can't think of the right questions."

Can't actually believe he said that.

What happened to the newsnight interview with Wendy getting gubbed by Glen Campbell? Why have the BBC withdrawn it from their website?

What is this about Wendy having a grasp of detail? Some people can talk a lot about nothing if that's what you mean? Nomatter how much the unionist press, and I'm sure you're not the pandering type Ian, try to bum-up Wendy it's obvious to all and sundry that she is going to end up a laughing stock.

Wendy can run but she can't hide forever!

Bring on the election Gordon.

On yersel' Alex!

Next time use a damp squid with long tentacles, if you can, miss A.
I know, very interesting, but not funny

Wendy Alexander against Salmond! Alexander would be on a steep learning curve on the second rung of the career ladder at Westminster. Salmond's one of the two great politicians of his generation (the view of an opponent as entrenched as William Rees-Mogg of The Times) with decades of experience.
Labour is in REAL trouble.

Brilliant, classic, priceless. First thing in the morning i am going out to buy several copies of the herald one to frame that article and the others to leave about for everyone to read.

.
Reminds me of those "canned" laughter and "canned" applause telly sitcomes and game shows with audience participation.

Wendy stands up; cue clapping, cue applause.

Cue laughter, aye that would be apropriate.

The cynic in me perceives that this cue whatever was preplanned.

Canned Wendy and it says what it does on the can,... not. Eh Alex.
.

Recipe for humiliation:

1. Add 2 and 2 for desired result.

2. Add a dash of hyperbole for seasoning (no direct quotes necessary for back-up).

3. Stir the mix with with a twisted imagination.

4. Stew, and then confront First Minister with concoction - await humiliation.

Maybe New Labour would be better with someone a little less intelligent than Wendy.

Wendy Alexanders performance was abysmal. That can be the only conclusion to anyone who witnessed it.
She was totally unprepared for the answers that Salmond gave. No back up quotes. No ablility to change mid-stream with a different strategy of questioning.
A very poor performance from Wendy. The only consolation was Andy Kerr was even worse. His consolation was LidDem Robert Brown was completely humilated.

The "Pretendy Wendy" Parliament, indeed. Only "Pretendy Wendy" will have to do an awful lot better. Never mind, maybe her husband will help her come up with some policies, what with his ideas on the constitution and all that..........;-)

The only thing worse is the fact she chose the Wicked Witch of the West as her "Justice" (sic) spokes-wummin. Anyone who saw this creature foaming at the mouth on election night should know that she should be given a wide berth...............

.

Mebbes

she

is the damp squib - a bad workman always blames their tools

But she is highly intelligent (lest we forget)

Nice photie, Mr Elder, of Blair's Brownie Babes paid to sit and glower at the SNP.

donald wrote:
Nice photie, Mr Elder, of Blair's Brownie Babes paid to sit and glower at the SNP.

It reminds me of the song "Thre Craws Sat upon a Wa'!"

BWAAHAHAHAHAA, BWAHAHAAHAHAHAAHA, BWAHAAHAHAHAAHA,BWAH
AAHAAHAHAHA....BWAHA
HAHAHAAHAHYou total muppet Wendy!

Good article above but did anyone else hear Angus MacLeod's assertion on Holyrood Live yesterday when he said basically that it ws 1-0 to Wendy? I couldn't believe my ears and then Iain MacWhirter said something similar on Newsnicht last night. These so-called political commentators get paid for giving an enlightened opinion on events but it's now apparent all they are doing is rearranging their prejudices.

@Alex Porter :

"What happened to the newsnight interview with Wendy getting gubbed by Glen Campbell? Why have the BBC withdrawn it from their website?"

Kirsty probably didn't like it ;-)

Wendy simply hasn't got any political nous. This was more than a damp squib this was her falling flat on her face in public.

I'm no supporter of the SNP, but Salmond certainly has panache. He trounced the whole opposition yesterday. Wee Wendy's performance was pathetic, not so much the thinking man's Jimmy Krankie; just Jimmy Krankie.

John,
So Wendy had 'Words With Wark'? Someone must have it on video though and can put it on Youtube surely?

Gordon Brewer last night set up Wendy's preformance ideally. It was a massacre yet Ian MacWhirter tried to make out that Wendy did well?

There's definately been an orchestrated effort to build up her image. As her own performances have let her down Labour's hacks have had to run around sticking patches on everything. Maybe they hope that with some time in the job she'll eventually get it. Problem is that she doesn't get it. She comes across like something out of celebrity grudge match. I think Salmond slightly fears being made to look like the bad guy by publicly humilating her; I think the hacks think that that means he's nervous of her 'detail' and they sense a weakness. Sorry chaps, wishful thinking; Salmond now knows he can routinely rout her. If Glen Campbell can do it then Salmond will with a blindfold on. So, given that we now have a new national sport you'd better advise her to do a Bush and stay away from the cameras and read pre-prepared scripts only. You can help by hand-picking which footage to use from Holyrood. Maybe you should do the Bin Laden thing and ocassionally release videos to proves she's alive. She obviously won't make it to the next election even with the patronage that goes along with being a Brownie. There's a few more in Labour's ranks who may fancy the job and even more who are very worried about their seats, that includes MPs. I give her one year before the dam bursts.

And all the king's horses and all the king's men....

Gianni@9.24am

I saw that. Angus MacLeod is not exactly known for his love of the SNP leader or the cause of Independence. His absurd '1-0 to Wendy' comment may win him the acclaim of the Unionist bunker but I doubt if it carries much weight in the mind of the average voter. Don't go making any gaffe jokes about him though or you could end up in court: http://www.scotcourt
s.gov.uk/opinions/20
07CSOH4.html

Was surprised that Iain MacWhirter thought Wendy had done ok, though he seemed to be more impressed by how well-dressed she was than anything else. I hope he was just being ironic.

It is well known in Scottish Labour circles that Ms. Alexander is not a good public speaker and it came as no surprise when Gallus Alex
brushed off her confused questioning!
Ms. Alexander's talents are in detail and organisation but when last in the Executive she left in a huff because she felt she was being asked to carry too many portfolios? According to many observers she does not like the pressure cooker of debate at Holyrood?
It is obvious to everyone that Mr. Salmond is the only politician of real stature in Scotland, and the undoubtedly able Ms. Alexander will have to try a different tack if she ever hopes to dent his image?

Gianni wrote:
Good article above but did anyone else hear Angus MacLeod\'s assertion on Holyrood Live yesterday when he said basically that it ws 1-0 to Wendy? I couldn\'t believe my ears and then Iain MacWhirter said something similar on Newsnicht last night. These so-called political commentators get paid for giving an enlightened opinion on events but it\'s now apparent all they are doing is rearranging their prejudices.

LABOUR BIAS IN THE MEDIA PART 97

Dear Gianni

You should realize that the press is Labours Fans Club and

Cheerleaders with typewriters.

Demented Swivel eyed Angus MacLeod is a crawling Labour Creep

The BBC stands for Biased Broadcasting Cr*p.

Its full of fawning Labour Aparatchiks and PINHEADS like that

KIRSTY WARK who is a Pretentious Pseudo Intellectual

Labour MUNCHKIN.

Addison De Witt

I am constantly amazed at the hype surrounding Wendy. Every single time I have witnessed her in Parliament she has amazed me even more by her ranting, wandering style. And for sheer entertainment value, look at her face when she is trying to give a 'I don't believe you said that' look. Utterly priceless, and straight out of (bad) school debating acting.

Is Salmond going to express his concern over this Taliban fighter who wants to stay in Scotland?

Its very quiet.

Nice picture of harpies and has-beens.

I knew Angus MacLeod when he worked in The Hootsmon in Glasgow. He was slavishly Labour then just like our colleague Dave Whitton. The beauty is, nowadays nobody takes them seriously.

Post last week highlighted it but so obvious yesterday ,the formal use of Mr.Salmond,Alec Salmond or First Minister when referring to him but the use of the informal Wendy when discussing her performance .This was the norm across most of the media .
Does anyone else think the term first minister should have been abolished along with the executive?

Scottish labours tactics have not changed one bit since May.

They still believe in telling the big lie and that that if you tell it often enough people will start to believe it, backed up by their friends in the media who are only to willing to help them.

They still havn't grasped or (or don't want to face the truth) that a major change has occured in Scottish politics.

As for Rab Jones comment, what a silly way to try and deflect criticisim, just change the subject!

I didn't see the debate but I'm surprised at the differences between the Herald and the 'Scots'man concerning the result.

The 'Scots'man gave Wendy six out of ten and Alex only five.

I imagine the Record and Sun reported the debate as a total victory for Alexander the great. Or something similar.

Jim Mitchell wrote:

"As for Rab Jones comment, what a silly way to try and deflect criticisim, just change the subject!"

Unless he was referring to Wendy Alexander as the Taliban fighter.

It would seem that Labour feels more comfortable in promoting a lie than dealing with the truth. The obvious example is Iraq, but Wendy Alexander was asking questions yesterday based on a lie and knowingly so.

The official record shows that under committee scrutiny by Labour MSPs the SNP minister for local government had categorically ruled out means testing.

This was meant to be a trap to catch Alex Samond out and make Wendy look good at her first ever First Minister's Question Time, but it didn't work. However a decision was made to go with the line that the SNP minister had said that the SNP government would bring in means testing, despite the official record saying the exact opposite. That decision, that tactic, as we have seen resulted in Alex Salmond wiping the floor with Wendy.

Lying and spinning in this way simply won't do as it will fatally undermine the voters confidence in Wendy Alexander's leadership.

Someone, one of her media buddies like Kirsty Wark, should be having a word in Wendy's ear, because as things stand Wendy can be branded a liar as well as big mouth.

Gianni wrote:

Good article above but did anyone else hear Angus MacLeod's assertion on Holyrood Live yesterday when he said basically that it ws 1-0 to Wendy? I couldn't believe my ears and then Iain MacWhirter said something similar on Newsnicht last night. These so-called political commentators get paid for giving an enlightened opinion on events but it's now apparent all they are doing is rearranging their prejudices.



I agree that the bias shown in these two interviews was extraordinary. Angus Macleod even implied that Salmond hadn’t answered Alexander’s question. I watched the whole Prime Ministers Question time again on parliament channel and there is no doubt that Salmond was very clear on what he said.

The other thing which was disappointing yesterday was that when the BBC’s Mark Thomson was interviewed about the extra funding for the BBC he wasn’t asked to expand on his comment that Scotland had no talent. I think he was let off the hook very lightly.

I watched Newsnight ,Wendy and Ms Goldie turned down the invitation to appear, don't blame them.
FMQ's for both those Lady's was a bit of a none event and the other speaker's should think before they do.
Nicol Stevens however should only be allowed out under adult suppervision he made a fool of himself and his party.
It looks like the extra power will be descussed by the Coalition Unionist Party but not the Scottish people and we will only know what these are if we elect them to power.

STV's Bernard Ponsonby, generally a fair minded observer of the Scottish political scene, said of Wendy's performance yesterday:

"No quote was produced to back up Miss Alexander's assertion that the scheme could be cut...Her first outing and no glove landed."
http://www.stv.tv/co
ntent/news/Politics_
NEW/index.html

This, according to Angus Macleod of the London Times, equates to 1-0 to Wendy. For the NorthBriton's Hamish McDonnell it was 5/10 for Alex but 6/10 to Wendy. Alan Cochrane of the Telegraph also thought Alexander did well in the face of an evasive Alex Salmond.

These Unionist journalists clearly inhabit a strange, fantasy world.


Perhaps some

I meant to add that perhaps some enterprising and independently minded academic could investigate the relationship between the North British unionist parties and our Scottish fourth estate, focusing say on the lead up to and immediate aftermath of the SNP victory in May's election. I'm sure it would make for fascinating reading.

Obviously an "unbiased" report of proceedings from a known SNP supporter !

Alex Porter wrote:
What happened to the newsnight interview with Wendy getting gubbed by Glen Campbell? Why have the BBC withdrawn it from their website? What is this about Wendy having a grasp of detail? Some people can talk a lot about nothing if that's what you mean? Nomatter how much the unionist press, and I'm sure you're not the pandering type Ian, try to bum-up Wendy it's obvious to all and sundry that she is going to end up a laughing stock. Wendy can run but she can't hide forever! Bring on the election Gordon.

That´ll be a UK election - the one that you aren´t in the country to vote for you stupid ****.

If you want to comment move back to the country. Otherwise button it and sticl to commenting on Spanish politics, seeing as you don´t actually want to live in the country

In stead of giving imaginary "scores" for "performance", it might be more to the point to look at what was actually said. the following is from another report in the debate, and certainly makes it much clearer that what Alexander had to say was just so much fabricated hot air, totally without substance. But don't take my word for it.

The Report :

The question she asked was this, “Why, yesterday, did the communities minister admit that the SNP government is now reviewing the scheme, with targeting or means-testing the likely outcome?”

Mr Salmond replied, “We are entirely committed to the statutory target to eradicate fuel poverty.

“That point was made by the minister yesterday.

“The description by Wendy Alexander of what he said at the committee is not accurate.

“The important point for people around Scotland is that we are reviewing that scheme with a means to improving it.”

After the exchange, Labour MSPs and officials insisted the Government was planning means-testing—a charge that was emphatically denied.

A spokesman for the First Minister said, “The question was means-testing—the answer was no.”

He pointed out that Mr Maxwell was specifically asked in the committee about means-testing, and was on the record as saying it was not considered.

The Government later released a transcript of the official record of the exchange between local government convener Duncan McNeil—a Labour MSP—and Mr Maxwell during the committee session.

in the official record, committee convener Duncan McNeill asked if there was a possibility that the central heating programme might be means-tested in future, to which Stewart Maxwell replied, “No, I am not suggesting that.”

On being pressed, Mr Maxwell continued, “I am not for a minute suggesting that we will take it away or stop it—that will not happen.”

In the chamber, however, Ms Alexander seemed unaware Mr Maxwell had ruled out means-testing.

Pressing her attack on Mr Salmond she said, “The communities minister told the local government committee that free central heating for pensioners was now under review, and that targeting was planned.”

“The truth is that we extended this scheme and he spoke about restricting it.

“Is that review under way—or have you simply ditched it because you’ve once again been rumbled?”

Mr Salmond accused Ms Alexander of ignoring his previous answer, and told MSPs, “We are reviewing the scheme with the purpose of improving it.

“Clearly we could not improve the scheme unless we reviewed it.

“There are deficiencies in the scheme—we are hoping to improve them, and I think that will be widely welcomed by people who suffer from poor heating in their houses and are looking forward to the improvements under an SNP government.”

Following the exchange, parliamentary affairs minister Bruce Crawford described Ms Alexander’s first First Minister’s questions (FMQ) as “disastrous.”

“Wendy Alexander has come totally unstuck in her first outing at FMQs,” he said.

“She built her entire line of questioning on a claim that turns out to be 100% untrue. It was a disastrous start, and her new team of spinners must be in despair.”

DOPEY SPARKY EATS TOO MANY DEEP FRIED MARS BARS.

HEY Sparky

A little tip.

Eat some fresh fruit and some vegetables, there rich in vitamins

and minerals with a bit of luck , you might get a couple of

brain cells. And lay off the cans of Buckfast. !!!!!!

Of course the usual rubbish from SNP supporters- their dislike of women, their odd praise of Alex Salmond despite the evidence and their assertion that any journalist who doesn't write a toadying article about Salmond is a labour party supporter

Dear All

“Wendy Alexander got a round of applause just for standing up yesterday”.

Well considering the weight she carries on the rear end, rising unaided deserves a round of applause!

“True, the claps were on her own side”.

Or was it a load of chimps having a tea party enjoying themselves with free bananas?

“but most audiences prefer to be absolutely certain a politician has shut up before registering gratitude”.
Well it is a Labour audience!

“Perhaps Labour decided to get its ovation in first”.

Good idea, I cheer when they shut up!

“It could become a trend”.

Among the simple folk only!

"Don't bother with the speech!", someone will cry. "You pretend to speak, we'll pretend to listen, and we'll give you a big hand anyway. In fact, if you promise to say nothing at all, we'll raise the roof."

New Labour have sunk to a new low, pathetic are they not?

“On reflection, Ms Alexander might have preferred it that way. On paper, her first turn as Alex Salmond's interrogator-in-chie

f must have looked a sure thing. Fuel poverty, senior citizens and broken SNP promises. It was too good to be true”.

Wendy “two chins” Alexander, champion of the people, no, try scheming middle class trough merchant oozing false charm and oily disposition.

“Acting on information received, the new Labour leader proceeded from the assumption the government is reviewing the scheme to provide OAPs with free central heating. It is. Ms Alexander then noted that the word "targeting" has been employed. It has, sort of”.

What an arse she made of herself again, she is definitely the elephant in the room or should that be the thing in the basket?

“A low-energy cartoon bulb brightened above the debutante's head. The nefarious Nats are reviewing the scheme, she said, "with targeting or means testing the likely outcome".

Must be nice to be a mindreader with the ability to get wrong!

“An attack on senior citizens? This was good stuff, delivered with confidence”.

Obviously Alexander wants attacks on the most disadvantaged to remain Labour turf, hence the M&S perforated comfortable knickers were well and truly in a twist!
“Even before Mr Salmond had offered the first of several versions of the same answer, however, you began to wonder”.

You have to offer several versions when dealing with a idiot! Terribly nice of the boy.

“What politician in his right mind duffs up OAPs?”

Anyone with New Labour membership with an eye fixed firmly on greed.

“Who would be silly enough to tamper with a scheme, albeit a Labour one, that has brought warmth and light to 80,000 homes?”

Labour, they are complete trash!

“The First Minister said, in effect, that Ms Alexander's claim was inaccurate but broadly correct”.

Good of Salmond to help the idiot out!

“Yeah, right, his opponent almost said. You sensed a subconscious Labour problem. Surely, they seemed to think, a review could only mean what it always means when they are in power - cuts all round”.

Funny how they seem to think that everyone is a just a load of dirty scumbags as them!

“Ms Alexander ploughed on”.

Good going consider the size of her rear end!

"Is that review under way," she demanded, "or have you simply ditched it because you've once again been rumbled?"

No, it was just a case of Alexander driving forward her negative agenda and limited mental ability!

“The First Minister seemed slightly uncomfortable at the start of the exchange, perhaps because he was worried Ms Alexander was going to bury him under the weight of detailed analysis for which she is renowned and he, shall we say, is not”.

Must be difficult for Salmond answering a bam who cannot read or ask the right questions!

“Now his confidence, never far from the vicinity, returned. Better still, he realised he could confine himself to a single, repeated answer. Another triumph for his renewable energy policies”.

Salmond choose the best way forward when dealing with a monkey.

“The First Minister is ducking the question," insisted Ms Alexander, who still wanted to know how targets can be applied to a universal scheme”.

Open yer ears, close yer ar$e and hear the sound of one hand clapping dear!

"I'm answering Wendy Alexander's questions very precisely," Mr Salmond replied. "It's not my fault if she can't think of the right questions."

Perhaps someone with a pencil could write them down for her!

“The purpose of the review, he said "is to see an enhanced and improved scheme". In particular, the government wants to address the issue of waiting lists”.

Hehehehehehehehehe!

“The ambush had failed”

Let’s nail it down, fat wee Hazel Blears types with the ability of a shaved monkey cannot set up ambushes. That horrible brown suit she wore must have been camo to blend in with the rest of the wood in the chamber!

“The ambush was in a bit more disarray, in fact, when the First Minister noted that the number of people in fuel poverty actually rose under the previous administration”.
New Labour punishing the poor by use of the state!

“Ms Alexander had mounted an able enough assault, but it's tricky when you try to storm a citadel armed with a damp squib”.

Finally we can groan at FMQ's when we get FMQ's and PMT's once a month from Alexander!

Yours sincerely

George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University

The whole problem with labour is that the media keep bumming them up. They are never going to improve if they and their numpty followers are continually led to believe they are actually competent.
Whether this helps or hinders the nationalist cause is debatable but I am certain that it doesn't do Scotland any favours. The media do all of us a great dis-service by so willingly accepting incompetence. If they were true to labour, they ought to be demanding improvements and they ought to be asking two main questions:- what can Scottish labour do to make our country better? What could the have done better in the 8 years they were in power? I suspect the media have two answers, 'nothing' and 'nothing'. I also expect labour MSPs and voters agree with this entirely. If you disagree, please forward your answers to;
The puppet wrangler,
10 Downing St

James wrote:
Of course the usual rubbish from SNP supporters- their dislike of women, their odd praise of Alex Salmond despite the evidence and their assertion that any journalist who doesn't write a toadying article about Salmond is a labour party supporter

Funnily enough, last time I looked the SNP deputy leader was of the female persuasion. And of course, no Labour commenter on a discussion forum has ever criticised Nicola Sturgeon on anything other than purely political grounds, eh...?
The Herald is reasonably unbiased at the moment. This article gives Salmond the debate on points, which seems to be the gneral view among the pundits (the BBC one, for instance)
You're no doubt happier with the Scotsman's version of this debate, which pretty much had Wendy parting the Red Sea and ending world poverty, as well as making Salmond disappear in a puff of smoke.

Has anyone else noticed BBC Scotland’s new method of presenting the news in which the reporter speaks directly to the news reader without looking at the camera. Its very disconcerting for the viewer. It gives a feeling of “I’m no really here”.
(Apologies to the poster of the same name).

James wrote:
Of course the usual rubbish from SNP supporters- their dislike of women, their odd praise of Alex Salmond despite the evidence and their assertion that any journalist who doesn't write a toadying article about Salmond is a labour party supporter

If you cant get the ball get the man....( or woman in the interests of complete fairness and equality ! ).

If you cannot fault the FM's answers to the idiocy of raising a question around a fault that does not exist, you take the huff at the justifiable criticism of sloppy journalistic commentary, then you point out that private commentators on a web forum don't reach your exalted standards of PCness.

Well done.

Sparky wrote:

"If you want to comment move back to the country. Otherwise button it and sticl to commenting on Spanish politics, seeing as you don´t actually want to live in the country"

I remember a dog in our street called Sparky. He was a well behaved dog who did what he was told. If he had been allowed to vote, he would have supported the Scottish Labour Party.

But she is highly intelligent (lest we forget)

...

So are Border Collies, and they easily can be trained to respond to whistles. Labour would be safer with a Collie, they are just as obedient but more focused.

Labour: Wee Wendy, Warks and WiMPs... (Westminster MPs)

James at 1:10 today said,

Of course the usual rubbish from SNP supporters- their dislike of women, their odd praise of Alex Salmond despite the evidence and their assertion that any journalist who doesn't write a toadying article about Salmond is a labour party supporter

The journalists singled out for particular criticism from SNP supporters are well-known for their unquestioning adherence to the Labour family firm that pretends to be a political movement. Indeed, many of them owe their journalistic careers to Labour contacts.

But the criticism is because journalists are meant to REPORT news, not make it up, as is so often the case with Messrs MacLeod, Young, Fraser, etc.

Although Labour have apparently accepted defeat, their press pals are still in denial. They think they can bring down a government by their lies and distorted reporting. All they will succeed in doing is bringing down a curtain on their own shredded and flimsy reputations.

I dont want to be rude.

But Looking at the photo above.

The Lady behind Wendy '' Tinkerbell '' Alexander.

The one who Looks like a RUSSIAN TANK DRIVER. IS she

Knitting.

And the Lady next to Wendy Looks like GOLLUM from the

Lord of the Rings . !!!!!!

Addison De Witt

What an embarrassment Wendy is, a real sight for sore eyes in those oversize clothes and 60's hairdo, meally mouthed and definately the one to lead Scottish labour at the next election. If this is the best labour can do, then Independence will come in my lifetime

Gone Yersel Wendy and thanks for the laughs

Maybe New Labour would be better with someone a little less intelligent than Wendy.

Do they have anybody a little less intelligent than Wendy?
Wonks don't win elections.

Today's reports in the Times, from Angus McLeod and Magnus Linklater, of yesterdays contest in the Scottish parliament are gross distortions of the truth. I don't know why the Editor ot the TImes lets them away with this rubbish.

From the reports of her fist examination of the policies of the snp oor wendy has shown herself not to be nu labours answer to the iron lady more like the sloppy ****.

jwil wrote:
Today's reports in the Times, from Angus McLeod and Magnus Linklater, of yesterdays contest in the Scottish parliament are gross distortions of the truth. I don't know why the Editor ot the TImes lets them away with this rubbish.

Angus MacLeod is a Labour OOMPA LOOMPA and

Part time BORIS KARLOFF impressionist.

As for Magnus Drinklater he is a effete Limp wristed pompous Twit

He used to be editor for the Anti Scotland Scotsman newspaper

Linklater Lives in a Edinburgh New Town House Mansion

and is a paid up member of the Labour Quisling Establishmemt.

Hebb, Addison, and jwil
I'm glad you agree because sometimes, just sometimes, I think: Is it just me being paranoid here?
I also meant to note MacWhirter's bizarre statement to Gordon Brewer last night which went something along the lines of:
(to paraphrase as my memory deserts me)

'Her questioning was false and inaccurate but it did the job in putting Salmond on the backfoot'.

I mean, what is that all about? Wendy might as well have asked Salmond to explain why there are fairies at the bottom of his garden if that's the type of thing that brings success. To be fair to Brewer (who I think is one of the more impartial media guys) he replied matter of factly that it was all irrelevant anyway if the question is based on nothing.